HDR10 vs HDR10+: static and dynamic metadata

By TechCompare · Updated November 2026 · How we check

HDR10+ helps a screen that's dimmer than the master tone map each scene on its own, instead of using one curve for the whole film. A screen without HDR10+ plays the same stream as plain HDR10.

HDR10

What the logo tells you: Nothing about quality. It's the base signal nearly every HDR screen accepts, so a cheap monitor and a top TV both list it.
Metadata: Static: one set for the whole video (SMPTE ST 2086 mastering data, plus MaxCLL and MaxFALL).
Signal curve: PQ (SMPTE ST 2084). Each code value stands for a set brightness in nits.
Bit depth: 10 bits
Color primaries: BT.2020
Without support: Not backward compatible with SDR. An SDR screen needs the player to convert it.
License: Free to use.
Who made it: Announced by the Consumer Technology Association (then the CEA) in August 2015.
What the screen still needs: Enough brightness and contrast to show the range the video was mastered for. The screen tone maps whatever it can't reach.

Source: Wikipedia, HDR10

HDR10+

What the logo tells you: The screen can read the per scene data. There are no public brightness tiers for the logo.
Metadata: Dynamic: new tone mapping data per scene or per frame (SMPTE ST 2094-40), on top of HDR10's static data.
Signal curve: PQ (SMPTE ST 2084), the same as HDR10.
Bit depth: 10 bits or more
Color primaries: BT.2020
Without support: A screen without HDR10+ ignores the extra data and plays it as HDR10.
License: Royalty free. Device makers can join a certification and logo program, with a yearly fee for some.
Who made it: Announced by Samsung and Amazon Video in April 2017. HDR10+ Technologies, set up by Samsung, 20th Century Fox and Panasonic, runs it.
What the screen still needs: The same brightness and contrast HDR10 needs. The dynamic data helps most on screens that are far dimmer than the master.

Source: Wikipedia, HDR10+

See all four HDR formats in the HDR Label Decoder. HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision and HLG, next to VESA's DisplayHDR tiers.

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HDR10+ is HDR10 with extra data. Both use the same PQ signal and BT.2020 color. The difference is the metadata, the notes that travel with the video and describe how bright it is. HDR10 sends one set for the whole video. HDR10+ can send new data for every scene or even every frame.

Topic

HDR10 vs HDR10+

Dynamic metadata

Formats

HDR10 and HDR10+

HDR signal formats

How this is calculated

HDR10's metadata is static. It carries the mastering display's details (SMPTE ST 2086) plus two numbers for the whole video: the brightest pixel and the brightest average frame, called MaxCLL and MaxFALL. A screen that can't reach those levels has to pick one tone mapping curve and use it everywhere, so a dark scene gets the same squeeze as the brightest one.

HDR10+ adds dynamic metadata, defined in SMPTE ST 2094-40. Each scene or frame can carry its own notes, so the screen can leave a dark scene alone and only squeeze the scenes that go past its peak. Samsung and Amazon Video announced it in April 2017. It's royalty free, with a certification and logo program that charges some device makers a yearly fee.

The extra data only helps when it reaches the screen. The source has to send HDR10+ video, like a streaming app or a player that supports it, and the screen has to use the data in its own tone mapping. A screen without HDR10+ ignores the extra data and plays the HDR10 base.

It doesn't change what the panel can do. A bright screen with good contrast has little to tone map, so the dynamic data matters less there. A dimmer screen gains more.

Verdict

HDR10+ is a nice extra, not a reason to pick one screen over another on its own. Brightness and contrast decide most of what HDR looks like. If two monitors or TVs are close in those, HDR10+ support is a fair tie breaker when you watch content that has it.